Apparatus for automatically introducing celestial object, terminal device and control system for astronomical telescope

ABSTRACT

A terminal device of an apparatus to automatically introduce a target celestial object includes an input operation section executing a command operation on the apparatus. An image display section indicates a star map image in accordance with a display scale factor. The input operation section includes a rotation command means that executes a rotational driving of the astronomical telescope in a telescope control mode. A scale factor input means executes an input specification of the display scale factor for the displayed star map image, which corresponds to a position on a celestial sphere toward which the astronomical telescope is headed, while a speed of rotation of the astronomical telescope controlled by the rotation command means changes in accordance with a decreasing function of the display scale factor.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a divisional application of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 12/816,630 filed on Jun. 16, 2010, which is a divisionalapplication of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/559,141 filed on Nov.30, 2005, which is a National Phase application of PCT/JP2004/007496filed on May 31, 2004; which claims priority to PCT/JP2003/006877 filedMay 30, 2003. The above applications are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an automatic introduction apparatus forautomatically introducing a celestial object in an image-capturingdevice, such as a telescope and a camera, as well as a terminal devicefor controlling the automatic introduction apparatus and a controlsystem for an astronomical telescope.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

There has been provided an astronomical telescope having two rotationaxes in orthogonal relationship, which is equipped with a function ofautomatic introduction for applying a rotational control to theastronomical telescope around two rotation axes such that if a userinputs directly or designates selectively a name of a celestial objectdesired to be observed, the target celestial object can be seen in afield-of-view of the astronomical telescope.

An astronomical telescope equipped with such an automatic introductionfunction (hereinafter referred to as “an automatic introduction typetelescope”) generally comprises, for each axis, a motor connected to thetelescope so as to rotate it around each of the axes, an encoderconnected to a shaft of each motor for counting and outputting a motorrevolution, a motor control section for driving and controlling themotors and a processor for arithmetically processing a command requiredfor the automatic introduction based on a set of information input bythe user and an output signal from the encoder. Further, a telescopemount is provided with a handheld controller (hereinafter, also referredto as “a handset”), one controller per each mount, connected via acable, to enable the user to manipulate the telescope.

The handset comprises an input operation section for enabling a user toinput a set of information and/or commands to be required forintroducing a celestial object automatically and a display sectionoperating associatively with the input operation section to indicate acurrent state of the telescope (a mode, a right ascension and adeclination to which the telescope is headed), a set of informationrelating to a target celestial object and a user interface screenincluding a guidance for initial setting and the like.

It is also occasionally required in a telescope of automaticintroduction type to manually make a minute correction to theorientation of the telescope when the telescope is desired to be rotatedaround the axes during the initial setting and/or in a case of failurewhere the target celestial object has not been fully introduced in acenter of field due to an error. To address this, the input operationsection of the handset is provided with a group of movement commandbuttons for causing the telescope to make a rotational movement in theforward and backward directions around two axes respectively and is alsoseparately provided with a speed command means for providing a commandon a rotational speed (a motor speed) around each axis when shifting theorientation of the telescope. This speed command means provides, forexample, a set of buttons, each being associated with a high,intermediate, low or ultra-low speed. To introduce the celestial objectby manual operation, the user typically resets the motor speed inresponse to the current scale factor employed by the telescope in such amanner that if the current scale factor is lower, then the user sets themotor to rotate at the high speed, and if the current scale factor ishigh, then the user sets the motor to rotate at the ultra-low speed,thus providing a reliable manual introduction of the celestial objectinto the center of the field in a short time. Further, quick andreliable manual introduction of the celestial object can be alsoprovided by resetting the motor speed in response to an elongation fromthe target celestial object in such a manner that if the direction inwhich the telescope is pointed is far from the target celestial object,then the high speed button is pressed, and as it approaches the targetcelestial object, the low speed button is pressed.

It is to be noted in an automatic introduction type telescope that inadvance of the automatic introduction, the user has to provide, for aprocessor of the telescope, a set of information including a longitudeand latitude of an observation site, a date and time and in whichdirection in the celestial sphere the telescope is pointed, after havingpointed the telescope in a predetermined direction. With an earlyversion of an automatic introduction type telescope, a user is typicallyrequired to input the longitude and latitude of the observation site inadvance using the handset, while the date and time are provided by aclock incorporated therein. To detect the direction in which thetelescope is actually pointed, in a condition where a mount is securelyheld in a horizontal state in the altazimuth instrument or a polar axisis precisely aligned in the equatorial instrument, the user selects atleast one star, typically at least two stars, as fundamental star(s) asa point(s) of reference, and actually introduces the fundamental star(s)into the field of the telescope to thereby notify the processor in whichdirection the telescope is pointed (i.e., the alignment).

Recently, a so-called “fully-automated telescope”, has been developed,which allows such an initial setting operation to be automaticallycarried out in an advanced manner. This type of fully-automatedtelescope is intended to provide a fully-automated operation of theinitial setting, that has been previously carried out manually, byautomatically identifying the longitude and latitude of the observationsite, the date and time and the direction in which the telescope ispointed with the aid of the GPS (Global Positioning System), ahorizontal sensor, a magnetic sensor and so on.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Problem to be Solved by the Invention

However, the automatic introduction type telescope according to theprior art as described above has the following problems.

(1) Problems Concerning a User Interface

In the prior art, the display section of the handset provides a userinterface using characters primarily, presented only by text, in a sizeas large as 16-columns x 2-rows of characters, for example. Inassociation with this, the input operation section employs a set ofbuttons, wherein the user has to make a direct input of a specific nameof a celestial object desired to be introduced automatically, bypressing buttons in the input operation section one after another.Further, when selecting the fundamental star(s) for the alignment,firstly a small number of fundamental stars are sequentially displayedin the display section, and secondly the user can make a selection onlyfrom those displayed, due to the limited capability of the displaysection, that shows only a few rows of text.

For the alignment, the user must have previous knowledge of where afundamental star is located, or the system only can be used after thename of a celestial object having been determined using a separateplanisphere. In addition, as described above, a gang control has notbeen employed between the telescope scale factor and the motor speed orbetween the elongation to the target celestial object and the motorspeed for the manual introduction of the target celestial object duringthe alignment process, but the control has relied on a user's input. Asis apparent from this fact, this type of prior art system, even thoughit is known as the automatic introduction type, has still beenconsidered difficult for a beginner to operate.

(2) Problems Concerning the Handset

Since the automatic introduction apparatus, especially the handset, ofthe astronomical telescope according to the prior art is a dedicatedapparatus that has been developed exclusively for a specific model type,it is generally manufactured in small numbers and is thus expensive.This has eliminated any freedom for the user to select his/her favoritetype of handset.

Still further, since the handset and the telescope are connected via acable as described above, handling thereof is troublesome, and there aresome inconveniences, such as where a cable may be caught somewhereespecially in night use.

(3) Restrictions on the Control

Since the connection between the telescope and the handset according tothe prior art has been provided for the purpose of carrying outtransmission of a simple control and/or position signal(s), the lengthof the cable has been restricted from a few meters to some ten meters inorder to keep the signal deterioration within an acceptable range. Thishas inhibited the control of the telescope remotely by using thehandset.

Further, because a single hand set can only control a single telescopein the prior art, a plurality of handsets has to be provided andmanipulated on such an occasion as an astronomical observation andviewing session where a plurality of telescopes is provided in order toobserve the same object at the same time. In another case where two ormore observers desire to use a single unit of telescope at the sametime, there is no other way than that a pair of telescope and handset isused by each individual.

(4) Low Precision in Automatic Introduction

The automatic introduction type telescope typically allows the targetcelestial object to be introduced into the field with a certain level ofprecision, so long as the correct initial setting has been accomplished.However, since mechanical errors associated with the mount, includingorthogonal errors between two rotation axes, have inherently existed, ithas been extremely difficult to achieve the automatic introduction withsuch a pin-point precision that allows the target celestial object to beintroduced into the center of the field, even at a high scale factor.Therefore, a minor adjustment operation has been typically required foradjusting the orientation of the telescope minutely in order toaccommodate the target celestial object in the center of the field afterthe automatic introduction of the object.

On the other hand, the fully automated telescope is intended to solvepartially the above-described problems concerning the user interface byproviding a fully automated initial setting operation. In actualpractice, however, since a plurality of sensors is used in the initialsetting, detection errors from respective sensors can be accumulated,and since especially the magnetic sensor, among others, provides asignificant detection error, it has been difficult to obtain asatisfactory initial setting precision, and accordingly if the automaticintroduction is carried out in the above described condition, then theactual introduction precision could be reduced to an extremely lowlevel. Consequently, an alignment process by the user is required inorder to improve the precision in the initial setting, similarly to theprior art system, and thus, even if an initial setting of high precisioncould be established, it would mean actually that the problem ofdeteriorated introduction precision resultant from the mechanical errorshas not yet been solved, as is the exact case with the earlier versionof the automatic introduction type telescope.

Therefore, the fully-automated telescope of the prior art has not yetaccomplished its original goal.

(5) Insufficient Real-Time Response to an Astronomical Phenomenon

The automatic introduction type telescope of the prior art comprises aROM located in a control substrate, which includes a stored databasecontaining a set of a position and other information relating torespective celestial objects. The ROM is, however, not rewritable andtherefore not able to accommodate the guidance involving an astronomicalphenomenon that varies from hour to hour and/or the automaticintroduction of an unexpectedly emerging celestial object, such as a newcomet and a super nova.

It is conceptually possible to cope with the varying astronomicalphenomena by connecting the telescope to a personal computer linked tothe Internet and providing the control using the personal computer.However, quite a high operational skill would be necessary to completelymaster a method to determine which site the correct information can beobtained from and how it can be executed using the software in thepersonal computer, and this requirement falls out of the concept offully-automated operation of the telescope.

As a whole, it is hard to say that the automatic introduction typetelescope in the current stage has successfully realized a user-friendlysystem, especially for a beginner, an intermediate-grade user, andworking people having limited available time.

Means to Solve the Problem

To solve the above problem, in one aspect of the present invention,provided is a terminal device connectable to an automatic introductionapparatus for automatically introducing a target celestial object bycontrolling a rotation of an astronomical telescope around at least twoaxes, the terminal device being characterized in comprising: an inputoperation section for executing a command operation on the automaticintroduction apparatus; and an image display section for indicating astar map image for a predetermined area on a celestial sphere inaccordance with a scale factor, in which the input operation section isprovided with: a rotation command means for executing a command input tocause the astronomical telescope to rotate around at least two axesrespectively in a telescope control mode; and a scale factor input meansfor executing an input specification of the display scale factor for thestar map image displayed in the image display section, wherein in thetelescope control mode, a star map image corresponding to a position ona celestial sphere toward which the astronomical telescope is headed isdisplayed in the image display section, while a speed of rotation of theastronomical telescope controlled by the rotation command means ischanged in accordance with a decreasing function of the display scalefactor specified by the scale factor input means.

According to the above-described aspect of the present invention, in thetelescope control mode, the astronomical telescope is allowed to rotatearound at least two axes respectively in response to the command fromthe rotation command means, and the star map image displayed in theimage display section is transferred in association with the orientationof the telescope. Regarding this stage, the control is given in such amanner that if the display scale factor specified by the scale factorinput means is large, the speed of rotation of the astronomicaltelescope by the rotation command means is lowered, and if the displayscale factor specified by the scale factor input means is small, thespeed of rotation of the astronomical telescope by the rotation commandmeans is increased. In this way, the present invention allows therotational speed to be adjusted automatically to match the zooming ofthe screen and therefore successfully eliminates the need forexclusively changing the rotational speed for each zooming operation.

Preferably, the input operation section is further provided with ashifting input means for shifting between the telescope control mode andthe celestial object selection mode for selecting the target celestialobject. This allows the mode change to be executed by one step ofoperation. It may be further contemplated that in the celestial objectselection mode, the target celestial object can be made selectable byintroduction of the target celestial object into the star map imagedisplayed in the image display section, and also that the star map imagedisplayed in the image display section can be made scrollable by theoperation of the rotation command means. This makes the setting of thetarget celestial object easier. Once the target celestial object hasbeen selected in the celestial object selection mode, the automaticintroduction of the target celestial object may be carried out by theoperation of the shifting input means, and then the process may proceedto the telescope control mode.

In another preferred aspect of the present invention, provided is acelestial object image display device comprising an image displaysection for indicating a star map image, the device being characterizedin comprising: an azimuth detection means for detecting an azimuth alonga direction to which the celestial object image display device isoriented; and a gradient detection means for detecting a gradient alonga direction to which the celestial object image display device isoriented, in which the image display section displays the star map imagefor a specific area which can be observed along the direction specifiedby the azimuth detected by said azimuth detection means and the gradientdetected by said gradient detection means at a current date and time anda longitude and latitude of an observation site. According to thisaspect, the constellation and the like can be displayed simply bydirecting the celestial object image display device held by the user inhis/her hand toward the sky. Preferably, the celestial object imagedisplay device causes the displayed star map image to make a diurnalmotion over time. More preferably, the celestial object image displaydevice may be configured to be connectable as a terminal device of theautomatic introduction apparatus for automatically introducing a targetcelestial object by controlling a rotation of an astronomical telescopearound at least two axes. For example, such a terminal device thatallows the selection of the target celestial object, the selection ofthe fundamental star and the like to be performed on the display screen,while cross-referring to the actual sky, if realized, could be auser-friendly terminal device. Further, if it is made possible tocontrol the astronomical telescope connected to the celestial objectimage display device so as to be oriented toward a direction specifiedby the azimuth detected by the azimuth detection means and by thegradient detected by the gradient detection means, the control of thetelescope will be much easier.

In still another preferred aspect of the present invention, provided isan automatic introduction apparatus for automatically introducing atarget celestial object by controlling a rotation of an astronomicaltelescope around at least two axes, the apparatus being characterized incomprising a Web server function. In this regard, the electriccommunication means may be selected from a group consisting of theInternet, an intranet and a LAN.

The automatic introduction apparatus with such a Web server function maybe controlled by a terminal device equipped with a Web browser function.Owing to this configuration, it becomes possible to use, for example, adedicated terminal, a commercially available PDA, a mobile phone, aportable game device and a personal computer, meaning that if the useralready owns a terminal, purchasing a new terminal is not necessary, oreven in case of purchasing a new terminal, the user has more choice whenselecting the terminal, satisfying his/her taste.

A terminal device equipped with a Web browser function may use awireless communication by means of Bluetooth, a wireless LAN, a light,an infrared ray or the like to communicate with the automaticintroduction apparatus equipped with the Web server function. This helpseliminate problems associated with cable communication, including signaldeterioration, mechanical failure and complicated handling procedures,and thus provides a satisfactory operational environment even for nightuse.

Further, when a terminal device and an automatic introduction apparatusequipped with a Web server function are interconnected by means of anelectric communication means such as the Internet, many forms of controlmay be employed including: control by a single terminal device for aplurality of automatic introduction apparatuses (1:n control); controlby a plurality of terminal devices for a single automatic introductionapparatus (n:1 control); and control by a plurality of terminal devicesfor a plurality of automatic introduction apparatuses (n:m control).These variations over the form of control can extend the freedom ofcontrol significantly as compared to the prior art that has onlyprovided a form of control by each single controller terminal for eachsingle automatic introduction apparatus (1:1 control). For example, aterminal device equipped with an input function and a terminal deviceequipped with a screen display function can be interconnected to anautomatic introduction apparatus via the electric communication means.In this case, the automatic introduction apparatus can execute thecontrol based on information input from the terminal device equippedwith the input function, while at the same time controlling the terminaldevice equipped with the screen display function to display input/outputinformation in association with this control. This can facilitate asmaller-sized handy input terminal and a larger-sized eye-friendlydisplay terminal, thus allowing an effective observation environment,including giving an introductory presentation on respective celestialobjects to a large number of people on such an occasion like anastronomical observation and viewing session. Further, a control systemfor an astronomical telescope can be constructed that enables serialtracking observation of a celestial object by means of a plurality ofastronomical telescopes by providing a sequentially shifting control toa plurality of automatic introduction apparatuses.

A control system for an astronomical telescope according to anotheraspect of the present invention comprises: a controller having afunction as a Web server computer; and a plurality of automaticintroduction apparatuses, each capable of controlling a rotation of itscorresponding astronomical telescope to automatically introduce a targetcelestial object, said controller and said plurality of automaticintroduction apparatuses being interconnected with each other via anelectric communication means, in which each of the plurality ofautomatic introduction apparatuses transmits a set of observationinformation concerning the apparatus and the controller executes apredetermined service to the plurality of automatic introductionapparatuses based on each received set of observation information.

In another preferred aspect of the present invention, provided is anautomatic introduction apparatus for automatically introducing a targetcelestial object by controlling a rotation of an astronomical telescopearound at least two axes, the apparatus being characterized incomprising: an image-capturing means for capturing an image of celestialobject; a celestial object database; and a celestial objectidentification means for identifying a celestial object whose image hasbeen captured, by comparing the image of celestial object captured bythe image-capturing means with a set of celestial object information inthe celestial object database. In order to reduce a volume of operationto be required, preferably the apparatus further comprises an imageprocessing means for extracting the information of each celestial objectfrom the image of the celestial object captured by the image-capturingmeans, wherein the celestial object identification means identifies thecelestial object whose image has been captured, by comparing theinformation of each celestial object extracted by the image processingmeans with the celestial object information stored in the celestialobject database.

According to the above-described aspect for the fully automatedintroduction apparatus, an alignment process for the purpose of defininga set of coordinate transformation information of a coordinate system inthe astronomical telescope relative to a celestial coordinate system canbe executed automatically based on a set of position information for thecelestial object identified by the celestial object identificationmeans. In this case, preferably the image-capturing means is configuredsuch that it can capture images at a plurality of focal distances. Thealignment process includes, for example, the steps of: capturing animage of a celestial object under a condition where the image-capturingmeans has been set at a focal distance for a wide angle side;identifying a celestial object in the celestial object image captured atthe wide angle side; correcting the coordinate transformationinformation based on the position information of the identifiedcelestial object; selecting a fundamental celestial object from thecelestial object image captured at the wide angle side; controlling arotation of the astronomical telescope so that the fundamental celestialobject can be introduced into a center of field in the captured image;capturing an image of a celestial object under a condition where theimage-capturing means has been shifted to a focal distance for a moretelescopic side; identifying a celestial object in the celestial objectimage captured at the more telescopic side; re-correcting the coordinatetransformation information based on the set of position information ofthe identified celestial object; and setting the image-capturing meanssequentially at different focal distances for the more telescopic sideand repeating the above respective steps until the fundamental celestialobject can be introduced into the center of field in the captured imagewith a sufficient precision. It is to be noted that the alignmentprocess is executed by using at least two fundamental celestial objects.

Thus, in this aspect, it becomes possible to obtain the inputinformation automatically, which has previously relied on a manual inputoperation from the user. Further, the alignment precision can besignificantly improved over the automatic alignment obtained by usingthe GPS, a horizontal sensor and a magnetic sensor, because in thisaspect the alignment is provided based on the position of theimage-captured celestial object.

A fully automated introduction apparatus also provides for an automatedexecution of the correction for the target celestial object after theautomatic introduction so that it can be introduced into the center ofthe field. In this case, the procedure is such that after the automaticintroduction of the target celestial object, the celestial object imageis captured by the image-capturing means, the celestial object in thecaptured image of the celestial object is identified, and based on theposition information of the identified celestial object, the rotationalcontrol of the astronomical telescope is provided so as to introduce thetarget celestial object into the center of the field. In this case,preferably the image-capturing means is configured so that it cancapture images at a plurality of focal distances. The fully automatedintroduction is achieved by executing the step of: after introducing thetarget celestial object automatically, capturing a celestial objectimage under a condition where the image-capturing means has been set ata predetermined focal distance; identifying a celestial object from thecaptured image of the celestial object; controlling the astronomicaltelescope to rotate so that the target celestial object can beintroduced into the center of field in the captured image based on theposition information for the identified celestial object; and settingthe image-capturing means sequentially at different focal distances forthe more telescopic side and repeating the above respective steps untilthe target celestial object can be introduced into the center of thefield in the captured image with a sufficient precision.

These and other features of the present invention will be more apparentfrom reading of the following detailed description with reference to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an automatic introductionapparatus comprising a handy planetarium type handset according to afirst embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an external view of the handset and telescope main body ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3A shows an example of a configuration for a graphic displaysection of the handset depicted in FIG. 2;

FIG. 3B is an enlarged view of a whole sky display area of said graphicdisplay section;

FIG. 4A is a block diagram showing a procedure for shifting between acelestial object selecting mode and a telescope control mode in thehandset according to the first embodiment;

FIG. 4B is a block diagram showing an associative operation between azooming function and a motor speed setting;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing in an electronicconstellation quick reference mode of the handset according to the firstembodiment;

FIG. 6A is a set of sketches showing a user holding the handset set inthe electronic constellation quick reference mode of FIG. 5 at eachdifferent tilting angle (altitude);

FIG. 6B is a block diagram showing a set of processes executed by thehandset in the state of FIG. 6A;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a Web server type automaticintroduction apparatus along with a Web browser type terminal deviceaccording to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8A shows a third embodiment of the present invention representing astate in which the Web server type automatic introduction apparatus andthe Web browser type terminal device depicted in FIG. 7 areinterconnected via the Internet;

FIG. 8B is a flow chart showing an example of control on an input and adisplay by taking advantage of the Internet connection depicted in FIG.8A;

FIG. 9 shows a form of connection between the terminal device and theWeb server type automatic introduction apparatus according to the thirdembodiment of the present invention, taking advantage of the Internetconnection as shown in FIG. 8, illustrating various types of control asshown in the diagrams: A (1:1 control), B (1:n control), C (n:1 control)and D (n:m control);

FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing of automaticintroduction control executed in the terminal device side in the form ofconnection shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing of automaticintroduction control executed in the automatic introduction apparatusside in the form of connection shown in FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a schematic view showing an application of a 1:n astronomicaltelescope control system;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view showing an application of a n:1 astronomicaltelescope control system;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view showing a first example of a continuousobservation system;

FIG. 15 is a schematic view showing a second example of a continuousobservation system;

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of a relay web server computer forproviding a set of astronomical information according to a fourthembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of a fully automated introductionapparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 18 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing for executingautomatic alignment (setting a first fundamental star) in a telescopehaving the fully automated introduction apparatus incorporated as shownin FIG. 17;

FIG. 19 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing for executingautomatic alignment (setting a second fundamental star) in a telescopehaving the fully automated introduction apparatus incorporated as shownin FIG. 17; and

FIG. 20 is a flow chart showing a flow of processing for executing fullyautomated introduction of a target celestial object in a telescopehaving the fully automated introduction apparatus incorporated as shownin FIG. 17.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be describedwith reference to the attached drawings.

First Embodiment An Automatic Introduction Apparatus Equipped with aHandy Planetarium Type Handset

FIG. 1 shows a schematic block diagram of an automatic introduction typeastronomical telescope comprising an astronomical object automaticintroduction apparatus 10 a according to a first embodiment of thepresent invention.

A telescope body 12 is of a type having two rotation axes in orthogonalrelationship, comprising motors 14, 16 mounted respectively to each ofthe orthogonal rotation axes to rotate the astronomical telescope body12 around each of the axes and encoders 18, 20 connected respectively toeach of the motor shafts for outputting a pulse signal in response tothe revolution of the motors 14, 16. It is to be noted that the encoders18, 20 are not limited to be directly connected to the motor shaft butmay be disposed in an intermediate stage in the course of decelerationto the ultimate stage along each one of right ascension and declination(or horizontal and vertical) axes by a set of gears, or may be directlycoupled to each one of the right ascension and the declination axes.

The telescope body 12 further comprises a CPU 22 for controlling thetelescope to cause it to carry out a function of the automaticintroduction apparatus 10 a. The CPU 22 is connected to the encoders 18,20 so as to read and count signal output from the encoders 18, 20 andalso to provide rotational control of the motors 14, 16 in accordancewith an input command from outside. The CPU is connected to a handheldtype controller (handset) 24 allowing for an input operation by a uservia a cable 32.

The handset 24 is incorporated with a CPU 26 and the CPU 26 is operableto detect a current position on a celestial sphere, to which thetelescope is oriented, from the count value of the encoder signal sentfrom the CPU 22, and then to send a command to the CPU 22 so that saidposition can fall on a coordinate position of the target celestialobject input by the user. The CPU 26 further provides a screen displayand a keyboard control, as will be described later in detail.

Further, the handset 24 comprises a star map database 27 in which alltypes of celestial data used in the star map have been stored, anazimuth sensor 34 for detecting an azimuth along which the handset 24 isoriented, a gradient sensor 36 for detecting an inclination angle of thehandset 24 and an internal clock 38. These components are connected tothe CPU 26 via a bus, which is not shown.

It is to be noted that the handset 24 and the CPU 22 may be fabricatedintegrally in one unit. Specifically, such a configuration can becontemplated that the CPU 26 includes the function of the CPU 22 or thatboth of the CPU 26 and the CPU 22 are disposed in the handset 24.Alternatively, the telescope body may be incorporated with the functionof the handset 24 and the telescope body may be equipped with a screendisplay section and/or a keyboard for the input operation.

FIG. 2 shows an exterior view of the telescope body 12 and the handset24. The telescope body 12 comprises a mount 12 a and a telescope lensbarrel 12 b mounted on the mount 12 a. In the example of FIG. 2, anequatorial mounting has been employed as the mounting 12 a and themotors 14 and 16 are serving as a right ascension motor and adeclination motor, respectively. It is to be appreciated that althoughthe right ascension motor 14 and the declination motor 16 are mountedinternally in a right ascension housing and a declination housing of themount 12 a, they may be of the external type. Further, the CPU 22 may beaccommodated in a control substrate contained in the declinationhousing, for example, or the controller incorporated with the CPU 22 maybe connected externally to the mount 12 a. The automatic introductionapparatus 10 a of the illustrated embodiment is applicable to analtazimuth mounting and in that case the motors 14 and 16 serve as ahorizontal motor and an altitude motor, respectively.

The handset 24 shown in FIG. 2 comprises a graphical display section 28and an input operation section 30 including a plurality of keys orbuttons (A, B, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8). The graphical display section28 is provided with a star map display section 40 capable of displayinga star map image consisting of, for example, an arrangement of fixedstars, planets, cluster of nebulas and constellations, a whole skydisplay section 44 capable of displaying a wider celestial sphere areathan the star map display section 40, for example, a star map image forthe north hemisphere or the south hemisphere and a character displaysection 42 for indicating the information relating to the telescope body12 and the celestial object by using the characters as shown in FIG. 3A.

The star map display section 40 presents an azimuth along the horizontalaxis and an altitude along the vertical axis. The CPU 26 reads the imagedata from the star map database 27 in accordance with a predeterminedalgorithm based on a set of input information input from the inputoperation section 30 and a set of output information from various typesof sensors, which are in turn displayed in the star map display section40. In this regard, names of constellations, planets and the likedisplayed in the star map image may be presented.

Further, the CPU 26 provides an indication in the form of cursor 46 asshown in FIG. 3B representing the current coordinate position on thecelestial sphere to which the telescope is oriented, which has beendetected from the count value of the encoder signal, or the coordinateposition of the target celestial object. The CPU 26 further presents, inthe whole sky display section 44, a frame 48 representing a rangedisplayed in the star map display section 40. This helps the user toknow instantly to which azimuth the telescope is oriented and/or whicharea on the whole sky the star map display section corresponds, thusfacilitating an understanding of the whole image.

A handling procedure and a control method of the automatic introductionapparatus 10 a according to the illustrated embodiment will now bedescribed.

This automatic introduction apparatus 10 a includes at least twodifferent modes: a celestial object selecting mode for selecting thetarget celestial object over the screen; and a telescope control mode,in which pressing down the button moves the telescope (mount).

It is assumed by way of example that the celestial object selecting modeis active, when the system is activated, as shown in FIG. 4A.

If the user presses down one of the buttons, 1, 2, 3 and 4 (see FIG. 2)of the input operation section 30, a sky presented in the star mapdisplay section 40 (see FIG. 3A) is moved vertically and horizontally inaccordance with the moving directions assigned to respective buttons. Itis to be noted that the mount of the telescope is not moving during thisoperation. The user manipulates the buttons so as to bring the targetcelestial object desired to be introduced to the position of the cursor41 located in the center of the star map display section 40, whileviewing the presented sky image. Once the target celestial object isdisplayed in the center, the character information display section 42may present various types of description including a right ascensionvalue, a declination value, a type of celestial object, a magnitude anda distance from the earth (in light years).

Under a condition where the target celestial object is displayed in thecenter of field, pressing down the A button shifts the screen into thetelescope control mode, where the telescope is placed under a motorcontrol so as to be moved toward the target celestial object. Since theactual coordinate position to which the telescope is oriented isindicated by the cursor 46 of the whole sky display section 44, the usercan intuitively realize an elongation between the target celestialobject displayed in the center of the star map display section 40 andthe current position of the telescope. As the cursor 46 moves inconjunction with the shifting of the telescope orientation andultimately enters the frame 48 representing the area occupied by thestar map display section 40 presented in the whole sky display section40, the cursor 46 also appears in the star map display section 40. Atthe completion of the introduction, the cursor 41 located in the centerof the screen meets the cursor 46, which indicates a match inorientation between the target celestial object and the telescope.Subsequently, if one of the buttons 1, 2, 3 or 4 is pressed down, theorientation of the telescope is shifted and, associatively, the screenin the star map display section 40 is shifted.

In the telescope control mode, the center region of the screen in thestar map display section 40 may be used to constantly present thecoordinate to which the telescope is oriented. In such a case, if thebutton A is pressed down under a condition where the target celestialobject is displayed in the center of the screen in the celestial objectselection mode, the screen display of the star map display section 40 ischanged from the state presenting the target celestial object located inthe center to the state presenting the telescope oriented coordinatelocated in the center of screen, and the screen in the star map displaysection 40 is moved in association with the commencement of theautomatic introduction. In this stage, the cursor 46 represents theposition of the target celestial object, and preferably the design ofthe cursor 46 should be modified in order to be distinguishable from thecursor in the case described above.

Further, the cursor 41 located in the center of the screen in the starmap display section 40 may be used to constantly represent the telescopeoriented coordinate position both in the celestial object selecting modeand in the telescope control mode. In such a case, the target celestialobject may be specified by the position of the cursor 46 in thecelestial object selecting mode, in which the buttons 1, 2, 3 and 4 maybe used to shift the cursor position.

As is shown in FIG. 4A, after the completion of the automaticintroduction, pressing down the button [A] again switches the screeninto the celestial object selecting mode. Thus, a single clickingoperation can provide the switching operation between the celestialobject selecting mode and the telescope control mode, wherein, uponswitching from [the celestial object selecting mode] to [the telescopecontrol mode], the automatic introduction is simultaneously started. Inorder to give a clear indication of the system having been shifted tothe respective mode, it is preferred to present the character indicationof the current mode on the screen, to modify the design of the cursorlocated in the center of screen and/or to modify the screen backgroundcolor.

Thus, in the illustrated embodiment allowing the handset 24 to providenot only the character indication of the information but also thedisplay of the star map, the user can select the target celestial objectmore easily.

It is to be noted that, if it is desired to specify a relatively largerarea, such as west sky or east sky, preferably an extensive area displayshould also be provided on the screen. Further, if it is desired topoint out a target celestial object from among a dense collection ofcelestial objects, preferably an enlarged indication should be given. Tosatisfy such a demand, the button 5 may be assigned a zooming infunction and the button 6 a zooming out function, in the input operationsection 30 of the handset 24. It may be arranged such that each pressingof respective buttons can effect the enlargement or reduction inaccordance with predetermined enlarging or reducing scale factors.

It is assumed herein that the current mode is set in the telescopecontrol mode. When the screen has been set with a high enlarging scalefactor, the whole screen can only present an indication of a very smallarea. Under this condition, if the motor speed is set high, pressingdown the motor control button 1, 2, 3 or 4 causes the movement to takeeffect over a large area rapidly, resulting in the indication of a quitedifferent location on the screen, which makes it difficult to grasp thecurrent position. Now, the opposite state is assumed, in which the largearea display is presented over the entire screen. Under this condition,if the motor speed is set low, pressing down the button 1, 2, 3 or 4would cause the telescope to move over an extremely small area, whichwould be occasionally smaller than one pixel size on the screen. In sucha case, a screen that is capable of showing a representation of themovement of the telescope (field of view) is not practically affordable.Accordingly, it is desirable that the control be provided automaticallysuch that the motor speed can be set low when the screen is in theenlarged state and the motor speed can be set high when the screen isnot in the enlarged state.

In the illustrated embodiment, such an arrangement as shown in FIG. 4Bhas been provided, in which each pressing of the zoom-in button 5 canslow down the motor speed and conversely each pressing of the zoom-outbutton 6 can increase the motor speed.

Since the present invention allows the motor speed to be changedautomatically in accordance the zooming operation of the screen, aproblem that the motor speed has to be exclusively changed inassociation with each zooming operation can be eliminated.

The handset 24 according to the illustrated embodiment further comprisesan electronic constellation quick reference mode for guiding a userabout a sky. A procedure in this mode is shown in the flow chart of FIG.5.

As shown in FIG. 5, immediately after the handset 24 has been poweredon, the star map display section 40 is in the setting for a maximumfield angle display (Step 500). In this state, the user directs thehandset 24 toward the sky desired to be observed as shown in FIG. 6A. Itcan be seen from the illustration that the altitude is classified as alow altitude, an intermediate altitude or a high altitude depending onthe azimuth of the sky desired to be observed.

Then, the handset 24 provides the drawing of a constellation chart inthe star map display section 40, which is associated with thecorresponding date and time, observation site, orientation in thehandset 24 and altitude (Step 502 of FIG. 5).

A drawing control of Step 502 may be provided such as shown in FIG. 6.Specifically, the CPU 26 of the handset 24 executes an arithmeticoperation to determine an azimuth and an elevation angle (altitude) forthe sky in the view of the user (i.e., the sky to which the handset 24is oriented) based on the signals output from the azimuth sensor 34 andthe gradient sensor 36 (Step 400). In parallel with or prior to thisoperation, the CPU 26 computes to determine an astronomicalconfiguration in the sky at the present time in the observation sitebased on the internal clock 38 and the latitude and longitude 50 of saidobservation site that has been previously input and stored in a flashmemory, for example (Step 402). It is to be noted that, although thelatitude and longitude information 50 of the observation site may beinput by the user from the input operation section 30, it may bedetected automatically via a GPS.

Subsequently, the CPU 26 reads a set of image data from the star mapdatabase 27 based on the derived astronomical configuration at thepresent time in the observation site, the set of image datacorresponding to the area defined by the current scale factor availablefor the display in the star map display section 40 of the handset 24,and then the CPU 26 compiles the data and presents the image of theconstellation in the current view of the user (i.e., the constellationto which the handset 24 is oriented) to be displayed in the star mapdisplay section 40 (Step 404). In this way, the user can easily obtainknowledge on the astronomical configuration in the sky by the maximumfield angle in the star map display section 40.

Then, the CPU 26 is transferred to the zooming waiting mode (Step 504).During this mode, if the user desires to know the displayed celestialobject in more detail, the user can press the zoom-in button 5 tothereby display an enlarge image. If the user desires a larger area tobe displayed, the zoom-out button 6 may be pressed to display a reducedimage. It is to be noted that since not only the image but also thenames of the celestial objects as well as the constellations arepresented in the star map display section 40, the user can obtain aninstant knowledge of the names of the celestial objects andconstellations currently shown in the image. If necessary, it is alsocontemplated that the character information display section 42 presentsa detailed description on the celestial object or constellation pointedto by the cursor 41.

Additionally, the CPU 26 constantly monitors the output signals from theazimuth sensor 34 and the gradient sensor 36, as will be describedbelow.

If there is a significant variation in the input from the gradientsensor 36 (Step 506 of FIG. 5), the CPU 26 causes the star map displaysection 40 to redraw the constellation chart allocated around thedetected inclination (altitude) of the handset 24 (Step 508). If thereis a significant variation in the input from the azimuth sensor 34 (Step510), the CPU 26 causes the star map display section 40 to redraw theconstellation chart allocated around the detected azimuth of the handset24 (Step 512). This allows the user to know the actually emergingconstellations and/or celestial objects immediately only by directingthe handset 24 toward any direction in the sky to be observed. In thisregard, if the displayed image is modified in tracing of a minutevariation in gradient or azimuth, it may be of poor quality, and so itis preferable that the modification to the image be applied when thevariation range exceeds a predetermined value and after that state haslasted for a predetermined time period. Further, when the handset 24 ismoved, preferably the display should not fully follow the moving speedof the handset 24 but the moving speed over the displayed image shouldbe appropriately set by taking the visibility into account.

It is to be noted that a fixed display mode may be provided, in whichthe once-displayed astronomical configuration image is fixedly presentedby a button manipulation so that the same image can be displayedcontinuously, even if the position of the handset 24 has been changed.If the fixed display mode is released by the button manipulation, theCPU 26 can be immediately transferred to the above-described monitoringmode.

Further, the CPU 26 at the same time provides a control to cause thedisplayed constellation chart to make a diurnal motion over time (Step514). The control can be provided similarly in the above-described fixeddisplay mode, as well. Then, the CPU 26 is transferred again into thezooming waiting mode, where similar processes can be repeated.

This electronic constellation quick reference mode may be used to selecta fundamental star used in the alignment before the automaticintroduction. For example, the star registered as one of the fundamentalstars may be displayed with a mark attached thereto. When the userpresses the selection button with the displayed fundamental star placedover the central cursor 41 in the star map display section 40 or thecursor 46, the CPU 26 can detect which fundamental star has beenselected. Further, the CPU 26 determines which direction the selectedfundamental star is currently oriented to and stores it. During thealignment process, the CPU 26 controls the motor so that the telescopeis oriented automatically to the direction of the selected fundamentalstar. In this case, due to a sensor error, occasionally the fundamentalstar fails to fall in the center of the field of view of the telescope.On such an occasion, the user presses the buttons 1, 2, 3 or 4 in theinput operation section 30 to thereby place the fundamental starultimately in the center of field and thus notify the accurate positionof the fundamental star to the CPU 26. It is to be noted that if thereis a time difference between the selection time of the fundamental starand the alignment time, the position of the fundamental star in storagevaries due to the diurnal motion, and so it is preferable that thestored position should be renewed in association with the diurnalmotion.

Although this mode requires that the user has to finally make analignment operation, the mode allows the user to intuitively select thefundamental star simply by orienting the handset 24 to the region of thesky containing the star emerging therein, and also allows thefundamental star to be introduced into an appropriate position, and sothe burden on the user required in performing the alignment operationcan be reduced considerably over the conventional method in which thefundamental stars are selected one by one on the character display andthen the telescope is moved from its initial orientation to the positionof the fundamental star by manipulation using the buttons of thehandset.

The electronic constellation quick reference mode may be used to selectthe target celestial object in the above-described celestial objectselecting mode. In this case, the user can select the target celestialobject by placing it over the cursor 41 or 46, while comparing thedisplayed image with the actual constellation. It is furthercontemplated that the electronic constellation quick reference mode maybe made usable in association with the above-described telescope controlmode. In such a case, the telescope is controlled to be driven so thatthe orientation of the handset 24 may be aligned with the field of viewof the telescope.

As is described above, the illustrated embodiment provides auser-friendly system allowing the user to perform the informationcollection and/or the selection of respective constellations orcelestial objects intuitively, while cross referring to the actual sky.

Second Embodiment A Web Server Type Automatic Introduction Apparatus

FIG. 7 shows a schematic configuration of a Web server type automaticintroduction apparatus 10 b according to a second embodiment of thepresent invention. It is to be noted that features similar to those inthe first embodiment are designated with like reference numerals, anddetailed descriptions of similar features are herein omitted, adescription being given only of different features.

The astronomical telescope body 12 comprises a CPU 52 for achieving afunction of an automatic introduction apparatus 10 b. The CPU 52 isprovided not only with a function for executing a calculation ofcoordinates, a reading of signals from the encoders 18 and 20, a motorcontrol and a communication with the controller terminals but alsoanother function for serving as a server computer capable of accessingthe Internet for communication with a variety of terminals so as tocontrol the telescope body 12.

Thus, in the second embodiment, since the automatic introductionapparatus 10 b is configured to be equipped with a Web server function,it has become possible to use a terminal loaded with a Web browserfunction in order to control the automatic introduction apparatus 10 b.Owing to this, a controller 54 of the automatic introduction apparatus10 b can be configured as any desired type of terminal having the Webbrowser function, the screen display, the key input control function andthe communication function. Such a terminal may be, for example, adedicated terminal, a commercially available PDA, a cellular telephone,a handheld gaming device or a personal computer. Accordingly, if a useralready owns a terminal, purchasing a new terminal is not necessary, oreven when purchasing a new terminal, the user has a wider choice, andcan select the terminal satisfying his/her taste. It is to be noted thatthe handset 24 of the first embodiment, which has been additionallyprovided with the browser function, may be employed as the controller54. In such a case, if the astronomical information, including a newcomet, a nova, for example, obtained from the Internet via the Webserver 52 is displayed in the display section 28, a timely observationof a celestial object can be facilitated.

The communication method with the CPU 52 may employ a wirelesscommunication by means of Bluetooth as exemplarily illustrated in FIG.7, or other types of wireless communication by means of a wireless LAN,a light or an infrared ray, for example. This reduces problemsassociated with cable communication, including signal deterioration,mechanical failure and complicated handling procedures, and thusprovides a satisfactory operational environment for night use. Ofcourse, the present embodiment also allows for Internet communication byusing a cable or via a telephone line.

It is to be noted that the telescope body 12 may be incorporated with afunction for serving as the handset. Specifically, the telescope bodymay be equipped with the screen display section or the keyboard for theinput operation. Further, a handset incorporated with the Web serverfunction may be also contemplated, including such a configuration of thehandset 24 of FIG. 1 that is incorporated with the Web server function,to which the terminal having the Web browser function is connected.

Third Embodiment A Control System for an Astronomical Telescope

A control system in a third embodiment will now be described, in whichone or more terminals and one or more automatic introduction apparatusesare connected in a network. It is to be noted that features similar tothose in the first and second embodiments are designated with the samereference numerals, and detailed descriptions of similar features areherein omitted, a description being given only of different features.

FIG. 8A shows a form of connection among a plurality of automaticintroduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . , each having the samefunction as the automatic introduction apparatus 10 b of FIG. 7, aplurality of terminal devices 74 a, 74 b, . . . , each having the samefunction as the controller 54 of FIG. 7, a terminal device 76 dedicatedfor the screen display function and a terminal device 78 dedicated forthe input function, all of which are interconnected via the Internet 70.It is to be noted that instead of the Internet 70, an intranet or a LAN(wired or wireless) may be used.

As is apparent from FIG. 8A, even when the terminal device 74 a, 74 b islocated remotely from the location of the automatic introductionapparatus 72 a, 72 b (telescope body), the automatic introductionapparatus 72 a, 72 b having the Web server function can be controlled bythe terminal device 74 a, 74 b via the Internet 70. For example, thetelescope may be installed on a rooftop and the controller terminal maybe placed in a room at a lower level, from which remote control stillcan be performed. It is further contemplated that the telescope may beinstalled on a high mountain, and controlled by a controller located inan urban area.

It can be also seen from FIG. 8A that variations of operation, including1:1, 1:n, n:1 and n:m operations, may be possible by the automaticintroduction apparatus main unit that has been provided with the Webserver function and the terminal device that has been provided with theWeb browser function (see FIG. 9). Specifically, it becomes possible fora single terminal to manipulate a plurality of telescopes, or for alarge number of people to manipulate a single telescope or a pluralityof telescopes. Advantageously, this helps achieve an efficientobservation on such an occasion as an astronomical observation andviewing session.

A control flow in the 1:n, n:1 and n:m connections will now beillustrated (m>1, n>1; m,n: integer).

Firstly, the flow chart of FIG. 10 is used to describe a flow of controlexecuted in the terminal device which is requesting automaticintroduction. First, a connection request is transmitted from theterminal device to the automatic introduction apparatus (Step 300). If aplurality of automatic introduction apparatuses are connectable via theInternet, any one of them may be selected or the connection request maybe transmitted to some or all of them. Then, the terminal device standsby until it receives a response to the connection request from theautomatic introduction apparatus (Step 302). When the terminal devicehas received the response from the automatic introduction apparatus(Step 302 affirmative determination), an introduction request (requestsignal for introduction of celestial object) is sent to the sameautomatic introduction apparatus (Step 304). This request signal forintroduction of a celestial object includes, for example, a set ofinformation for specifying a target celestial object or a position on acelestial sphere to be introduced by the automatic introductionapparatus that has transmitted the response (right ascension,declination). If the terminal device is connected to a plurality ofautomatic introduction apparatuses, a request signal for introduction ofa celestial object is sent to the plurality of automatic introductionapparatuses, respectively, in accordance with a predetermined sequence(e.g., the sequence of receipt of responses). The target celestialobjects may be different or identical among the plurality of automaticintroduction apparatuses.

It is then determined whether the introduction by the automaticintroduction apparatus has been completed (Step 306). If theintroduction has not yet been completed (Step 306 negativedetermination), a connection acknowledgment signal is sent (Step 308)and the terminal device stands by until the introduction has beenfinally completed. If the introduction has been completed (Step 306affirmative determination), it is determined whether the observation isterminated by the same automatic introduction apparatus (Step 310). Thisdetermination of terminating the observation may be made based on, forexample, whether the introduction schedule in the terminal device sidehas been completed or whether the instruction of terminating theobservation has been given from the automatic introduction apparatusside. If not terminating the observation (Step 310 negativedetermination), the process returns to Step 304 where the introductionrequest is transmitted. If terminating the observation (Step 310affirmative determination), the connection with the same automaticintroduction apparatus is released (Step 312).

A flow of control executed in the automatic introduction apparatus sideto which the automatic introduction is to be requested will now bedescribed with reference to a flow chart of FIG. 11. As illustrated inthe drawing, it is firstly determined whether the connection requestfrom the terminal device side has been received (Step 320). Theapparatus stands by until it receives the connection request, and uponreceipt (Step 320 affirmative determination), an address of acorresponding entity to be connected (a terminal device side) is stored(Step 322) and the connection to the terminal device side is thenestablished. Subsequently, it is determined whether the introductionrequest has been received from the corresponding terminal device sideconnected to the apparatus (Step 324). The apparatus stands by until therequest signal for introduction of a celestial object has been received,and upon receipt (Step 324 affirmative determination) a targetcoordinate of the target celestial object specified by the requestsignal for introduction of celestial object is calculated (Step 326),the rotational control to the motor of the telescope body is started(Step 328), and after the standing-by by the apparatus (Step 330), it isdetermined whether the telescope has reached the target coordinate (Step332). If it has not reached the target coordinate (Step 332 negativedetermination), it is determined whether the connection acknowledgementsignal from the terminal device (Step 308 of FIG. 10) has been received(Step 334). If receipt of the connection acknowledgement signal from theterminal has been confirmed (Step 334 affirmative determination), theprocess returns to Step 328, where similar processes are repeated untilthe target coordinate has been reached while the connection to theterminal device is being confirmed. If the target coordinate has beenreached (Step 332 affirmative determination), the motor is stopped (Step338), and it is determined whether the connection should be released,based on the request from the terminal device side and/or theobservation schedule (Step 340). If the connection is not released (Step340 negative determination), the process returns to Step 324, stands byfor the introduction request from the terminal device side and similarprocesses are repeated. If the connection is released (Step 340affirmative determination), the connection to the terminal device sideis actually released (Step 342).

Exemplary applications of the configuration as shown in FIGS. 8 to 11will be given below.

(An independent terminal with a display and input function)

A terminal device of the prior art includes a display section and aninput section that are incorporated in a single unit. However, thedisplay section is desirably large in size in order to display a starmap and/or an image captured through the telescope body (i.e., in orderto increase a volume of information). On the other hand, an inputsection as small as a user can hold in his/her hand could be easilyhandled. To solve this conflicting demand, in the 1:n or n:m connection(FIG. 9), a terminal device 76 specialized for the image display and aterminal device 78 specialized for the input function are disposedseparately as terminal devices, as shown in FIG. 8A.

A flow for controlling the Web server type automatic introductionapparatus 72 a of a single telescope body by using this configurationwill now be described with reference to FIG. 8B.

As is shown in FIG. 8B, the Web server type automatic introductionapparatus 72 a searches for the terminal device 76 having a displayattribute via the Internet 70 (step 550). When the terminal 76 having adisplay attribute is detected, the information to be indicated istransmitted to the same terminal 76 having a display attribute (Step552). Subsequently, the Web server type automatic introduction apparatus72 a searches for the terminal device 78 having an input attribute viathe Internet 70 (Step 554). When the terminal 78 having an inputattribute is detected, the information input by the user from theterminal is obtained (Step 556). The Web server type automaticintroduction apparatus 72 a executes an operation based on the inputinformation and returns to Step 550 where a similar process is executed.Thus, the display section and the input section are not necessarilyconstructed as one unit, but it is also contemplated, for example, thatthe input section is manipulated as it is in a user's pocket and thedisplay section is disposed externally, which is very effective forobservation by a large number of people. If using the Internet and/orthe LAN, such a configuration can be easily achieved, in which aplurality of display terminals are disposed at remote sites, allowingfor observation at a plurality of locations by a large number of people.

(1:n Control)

FIG. 12 shows an application of a control system for an astronomicaltelescope in the 1:n control manner.

The control system shown in FIG. 12 comprises a plurality ofastronomical telescopes 110 a, 110 b, 110 c, . . . , and a singleterminal device 102 having a right of control to a plurality ofautomatic introduction apparatuses, said plurality of astronomicaltelescopes and said single terminal device being interconnected via anelectric communication means, such as the Internet and a LAN (FIG. 8A).Each of the astronomical telescopes 110 a, 110 b, 110 c, . . . isconnected with each of the handsets 112 a, 112 b, 112 c, . . . by awired connection, preferably by a wireless connection. Those handsetsmay be a type of handset as shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 or FIG. 7. Theautomatic introduction apparatus can have the Web server function asshown in FIG. 7.

The terminal device 102 has a display section 108. This terminal device102 may be configured by a handset similar to that described above or bya personal computer. Further, the terminal device 102 may be alsoconnected to the astronomical telescope incorporated with the automaticintroduction apparatus.

The control system as shown in FIG. 12 may be applicable to an occasionsuch as a celestial object observation and viewing session. For example,each participant may be provided with each of the astronomicaltelescopes 110 a, 110 b, 110 c, . . . , and a docent is provided withthe terminal device 102. The docent sends a connection request (Step 300of FIG. 10) and an introduction request (Step 304 of FIG. 10) fromhis/her terminal device to every one of the astronomical telescopes toprovide block control of automatic introduction to all of theastronomical telescopes of the participants, thereby allowing everyparticipant to observe the same celestial object. It is a matter ofcourse that the introduction of each different target celestial objectinto each different astronomical telescope may be requested from theterminal device 102.

Although each astronomical telescope may start the motor rotationimmediately upon receipt of the introduction request from the terminaldevice 102, in order to improve the safety, each of the handsets 112 a,112 b, 112 c, . . . , may be provided with an operation starting button,which is pressed by the participant to thereby start the rotationalcontrol of the motor in response to the introduction request. The lattercase allows the introduction to start after confirming that theparticipant has moved away from the telescope, thus improving safety. Itis preferred that each automatic introduction apparatus may compriseeither one of an alarm means for giving an alarm sound or an alarmindication when starting the driving of the astronomical telescope and astop means for an emergency stop of the rotational driving of theastronomical telescope when communication with the terminal device 102has been shutdown.

It is further contemplated that in each astronomical telescope a handsetmay be provided with a priority operation button serving for giving apriority to a command from a handset over a command from the terminaldevice 102. For example, safety may be further improved by provision ofa button for an emergency stop of a motor rotation during the automaticintroduction. Further, it is also contemplated that pressing down thepriority operation button can direct the astronomical telescope to adesired direction independently of the command from the terminal device.

It is further contemplated that the terminal device 102 and/orrespective handsets may have a function for transferring the right ofcontrol of the control system from the terminal device 102 to any one ofthe handsets 112 a, 112 b, 112 c, . . . . In this case, a participant isallowed to automatically introduce his/her target celestial object toanother astronomical telescope so as to give an introductorypresentation to the others.

Further, the terminal device 102 may include an individual control modefor controlling exclusively at least one specific automatic introductionapparatus. This allows individual instruction to the participantsaccording to their different learning levels.

The display section 108 of the terminal device 102 may indicate thereceived information from each of the automatic introduction apparatusesin order to assist the management and instruction control of eachautomatic introduction apparatus by the terminal device 102. Thisinformation may include at least one item selected from a groupconsisting of, for example, an ending state of each operation of theautomatic introduction apparatus, a set of information indicating theazimuth or the position on the celestial sphere to which eachastronomical telescope is oriented, a set of electronic mail informationfrom each user of each automatic introduction apparatus and an imagedata of celestial object taken through each astronomical telescope.Further, those types of information may be transferable among theautomatic introduction apparatuses.

To execute the automatic introduction by each astronomical telescopemore efficiently, the terminal device 102 may be provided with afunction to store the information for the alignment required for theautomatic introduction by each astronomical telescope and tore-establish the information for the alignment for each of the automaticintroduction apparatuses upon subsequent activation of the controlsystem. This can effectively eliminate the aligning work by theparticipant from the second and subsequent observation and viewingsessions, enabling the astronomical observation and viewing session tostart more quickly.

(n:1 Control)

FIG. 13 shows an application of a control system for an astronomicaltelescope on the basis of n:1 control.

The control system as shown in FIG. 13 comprises a single astronomicaltelescope 124 incorporated with an automatic introduction apparatus, ahandset 122 provided thereto for manipulating an input to theastronomical telescope 124, and a plurality of handsets 120 a, 120 b,120 c, 120 d, 120 e, . . . , connected to the handset 122 or theautomatic introduction apparatus of the astronomical telescope 124.

A plurality of handsets 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d and 102 e sendsrequest signals for introduction of a celestial object via electriccommunication means. If request signals for introduction of celestialobject are received from two or more handsets (for the receipt of aplurality of introduction requests at Step 324 of FIG. 11), theautomatic introduction apparatus 124 allocates the execution sequence ofthe request signals for introduction of a celestial object in accordancewith a predetermined sequence and allows for a sequential automaticintroduction of each target celestial object in accordance with theexecution sequence.

This predetermined execution sequence may be defined by, for example,either one of:

(1) a sequence in which the request signal for introduction of acelestial object received earlier by the automatic introductionapparatus 124 has a priority over others;

(2) a sequence in which the request signal for introduction of acelestial object from other handsets 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d and 120e, capable of being manipulated by the handset 122 has a priority overothers;

(3) when there are differences in receipt time among a plurality ofrequest signals for introduction of a celestial object, falling within apredetermined time period, a sequence in which the request signal forintroduction of a celestial object specifying a celestial object closerto the direction to which the astronomical telescope 124 is currentlyoriented has a priority over others.

The handsets 122, 120 a, 120 b, 120 c, 120 d, 120 e, . . . , comprisedisplay sections. These display sections are able to display at leastone item selected from a group consisting of, for example, an ending astate of each operation of the automatic introduction apparatus 124, theinformation indicating the direction or the position on the celestialsphere to which the astronomical telescope is oriented, the informationrelating to the celestial object to be introduced by the astronomicaltelescope, and the image data of the celestial object captured throughthe astronomical telescope. The celestial object information servercomputer 126 is connectable to the electric communication means. Theimage, motion picture, voice, briefing paper and data concerning thecelestial object to be introduced may be transmitted from the celestialobject information server computer 126, which are received and in turndisplayed and reproduced in respective handsets. It is to be noted thatthe celestial object information server computer 126 may be applicableto the 1:n control of FIG. 12.

(Serial Observation System)

A serial observation system which allows a serial tracking observationof a celestial object by a plurality of astronomical telescopes can beconfigured by providing a sequential switching control to a plurality ofautomatic introduction apparatuses that are interconnected to each otherby taking advantage of a control system for an astronomical telescopeaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. This serialobservation system can be constructed by, for example, interconnecting aplurality of automatic introduction apparatuses, each equipped with aWeb server function, via the Internet or the like so that theinformation can be transmitted among those automatic introductionapparatuses. Alternatively, the system can be constructed by using asingle Web server computer for managing and controlling the automaticintroduction apparatuses interconnected to one another, such that thecomputer may control individual automatic introduction apparatuses so asto enable the serial observation.

FIG. 14 shows an example of the serial observation system. Theillustrated system comprises two astronomical telescopes 130 a and 130b, each equipped with the German equatorial telescope. Thoseastronomical telescopes are equipped with CCD cameras 132 a and 132 b,respectively, thus allowing them to capture images of target celestialobjects.

It is assumed by way of example that one astronomical telescope 130 aobserves a celestial object E located in the east side with respect tothe meridian 128. At this time, the lens barrel of the astronomicaltelescope 130 a is located in the west side with respect to the Germanequatorial telescope mount. The other astronomical telescope 130 b isplaced in a stand-by state under a condition of the lens barrel havingbeen inverted so that the lens barrel is located in the east side withrespect to the German equatorial telescope mount.

When the astronomical telescope 130 a has finished observing thecelestial object E and is then to start the observation of the celestialobject W located in the west side of the meridian 128, there is apotential problem in a case that no modification is made that a lensbarrel and/or a CCD camera may interfere with the equatorial telescopeor a tripod (not shown). According to the prior art, it has beenrequired that the lens barrel must be inverted by changing its positionwith respect to the mount defined by the east and the west direction,resulting in a downtime inhibiting the observation during this invertingoperation. The serial observation system of the present embodiment, inthis case, provides a control in such a manner that the celestial objectW is observed (image-captured) by the astronomical telescope 130 b whoselens barrel has been previously inverted. This can minimize the downtimeinhibiting the observation and allows the celestial object to beobserved (image-captured) continuously.

It is assumed further that the astronomical telescope 130 a is observingthe celestial object N. When the celestial object N is transferred overthe meridian 128 to the west side, the observation task of the celestialobject N is transferred quickly to the astronomical telescope 130 b.This can reduce the time necessary for the lens barrel inversion so asto provide the observation (image-capturing) of the same celestialobject N continuously.

Although the example of FIG. 14 uses two astronomical telescopes, usingthree or more astronomical telescopes may be feasible.

Further, for a visual observation using the Newtonian reflectingtelescope comprising an eye piece mounted on a side face of the lensbarrel, the orientation of the eye piece would be greatly changedrelative to the east or the west with respect to the meridian. In a caseof using this serial observation system, if in the situation of crossingthe meridian, the automatic introduction of the celestial object underthe observation is achieved with the telescope whose lens barrel hasbeen previously inverted with the eye piece position adjusted for thevisual observation, then even during the visual observation, the timerequired for the inversion of the equatorial telescope and/or therotation of the lens barrel can still be reduced.

The serial observation system according to the present embodiment may beapplicable to the serial observation of a celestial object moving at ahigh speed, such as a satellite. The application thereof is shown inFIG. 15.

Assuming such a situation as shown in FIG. 15 in which a plurality ofastronomical telescopes 140 a, 140 b, 140 c, . . . , incorporated with aplurality of automatic introduction apparatuses are distributed atdifferent sites (for example, in Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka), theastronomical telescope 140 a starts the observation of a satellite Smoving at high speed along a low-altitude orbit at a first point ofemergence of the satellite. The astronomical telescope 140 a transmitsthe information on the movement of the satellite S to the other sites,while observing the satellite S. Each of the automatic introductionapparatuses estimates and calculates a time, a coordinate of thesatellite S emerging in its installation site based on the receivedmovement information, and the astronomical telescope is directed to thecoordinate of emergence at the time when the observation is possible,and starts the observation. By executing this work serially at aplurality of sites in a chain, the serial tracking observation of acelestial object moving at high speed is made possible.

In another example of the serial observation system of FIG. 15, each ofthe automatic introduction apparatuses distributed in respective sitescomprises an observation area detection means for detecting an area onthe celestial sphere available for the celestial object observation inits associated site. This observation area detection means comprises aCCD camera and an image analyzing unit for identifying an area thatpermits the celestial object observation and an area that does notpermit the celestial object observation (where the image-capturing isinhibited by obstacles including clouds, mountains, buildings andenvironmental pollution) from the image captured by the CCD camera.

In this serial observation system, as the celestial telescope 140 aduring the observation has changed its direction to an area out of acelestial object observation allowable range detected by the observationarea detection means, the control is sequentially shifted to any one ofother automatic introduction apparatuses 140 b, 140 c which has itsassociated observation area including the area out of the allowablerange. This enables serial observation of the celestial object acrossfine intervals, for example.

(Observation Information Sharing System)

Conventionally, a telescope body and an automatic introduction apparatusare typically distributed and delivered to a user packed as a set. Incontrast, the observation information sharing system of the presentembodiment has achieved an additional function of the automaticintroduction apparatus via a relay Web server.

FIG. 16 shows a relay Web server computer for sharing observationinformation 100 equipped with such an additional function. As shown inFIG. 16, the relay Web server computer 100 is connected to Web servertype automatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . , and to avariety of types of terminal devices 74 a, 74 b, . . . , via theInternet 70 (or a LAN) so as to make the data transmission availableamong them.

The relay Web server computer 100 includes, for example, a new celestialobject information search function for making an automatic access to anastronomical information site to obtain a set of information about a newcelestial object, a weather information search function for making anaccess to an information site for a weather satellite and/or a weatherforecast to obtain weather information, a menu function for editing theinformation input from the input device and the information searched bythe search function according to a predetermined introduction menuprogram and for transmitting the edited information to the Web servertype automatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . , a helpfunction to execute an operation and/or a collection of information onbehalf of and in response to the request from the terminal devices 74 a,74 b, . . . , or the Web server automatic introduction apparatuses, anda data/program transmission function for transmitting the data/program.Those functions can be achieved by a CPU for carrying out the Web serverfunction, a program for causing the CPU to execute the above-describedrespective functions, a storage device such as a hard disk, and an inputdevice (a keyboard, a mouse, a DVD±R/±RW/ROM drive, a CD-R/RW/ROM driveand the like).

In the storage device of the relay Web server computer 100 are stored anew celestial object database containing the information relating to thenew celestial objects, a version-up database containing version-up dataand/or a firmware program for the terminal devices or the Web servertype automatic introduction apparatus, a celestial object observationassisting database containing a set of information essential to thecelestial object observation, such as weather information and/orobservation site information, and a program database containing aprogram in the form of an object executable by the Web server typeautomatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . . These databasesare constantly renewed by the input from each of the above-describedsearch functions and the input device.

The information providing service taking advantage of the relay Webserver computer 100 includes the following, for example.

(1) A New Celestial Object Introduction

For example, a coordinate at the present time and a moving speed alongthe right ascension and the declination of a new comet is sent to theWeb server type automatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . .This allows the Web server type automatic introduction apparatuses notonly to perform an automatic introduction of the new comet but also toaccommodate automatic tracking. Further, a type of information includinga magnitude and an orbit may be provided.

The above description can be applied to other new celestial objects.

(2) Version-Up

The data and/or the firmware program that have been upgraded isdistributed to the terminal devices 74, 74 b, . . . , or the Web servertype automatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . .

(3) A Celestial Object Introduction Menu

A recommended celestial object introduction menu in association with acurrent season or term as well as other introduction menus for thecelestial objects or topics may be executed by the Web server typeautomatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . . Theseintroduction menus comprise a command for introducing a plurality ofselected celestial objects sequentially and an introductory descriptionof each of the celestial objects.

It is to be noted that the introduction menu may be sent as data to beexecuted by a menu program that has been already installed in the Webserver type automatic introduction apparatus. Alternatively, theintroduction menu may be sent to the Web server type automaticintroduction apparatus as a program, where it is transformed intoexecutable form and then the introduction menu is executed.

(4) Help Function

An operation and collection of information in response to a request fromthe terminal device or the Web server type automatic introduction can beexecuted on their behalf. For example, when the arithmetic operationload is heavy and a longer time must be necessary for the automaticintroduction in the Web server type automatic introduction apparatus, apart or all of the arithmetic operation may be executed by the helpfunction on behalf of the Web server type automatic introductionapparatus. Further, when no load is applied to any one of the Web servertype automatic introduction apparatuses, that Web server may beinstructed to carry out a part of the arithmetic operation.

The service can accommodate mass-data transmission.

(5) Providing the Observation Site Information.

If the weather sensor 90 has been connected to each of the Web servertype automatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, . . . located atrespective sites, the weather information of respective sites can besent to each of the terminal devices. Those sets of weather data may becompensated by the information obtained from the weather forecast site.Since the user can know in advance which district has good weather, thisservice is useful for the celestial object observation.

It is further contemplated that a distance may be calculated from ameteor, a trace of meteor and a fireball that have been image-capturedby the Web server type automatic introduction apparatuses 72 a, 72 b, .. . at respective observation sites, and/or a geometry of a minor planetmay be arithmetically derived from an occultation observation result forthe minor planet at each site, wherein the derived results may be sentback to respective terminal devices and/or automatic introductionapparatuses.

The relay Web server 100 may be installed within an astronomicaltelescope distributing company, for example, from which the server canprovide the information providing service as described above, therebyachieving a user-friendly celestial object observation system. If therelay Web server is provided with an accounting function, the server cancollect a charge depending on the usage of the additional services.

In order to execute the above-described service function in a carefullythought out manner as per each automatic introduction apparatus,preferably each one of the plurality of automatic introductionapparatuses sends the observation information relating to respectiveapparatuses. In this case, the relay Web server 100 executes apredetermined service associated with each one of the plurality ofautomatic introduction apparatuses based on the received observationinformation relating to each apparatus.

The observation information to be sent may include a set of informationabout a celestial object to be introduced, which allows the user toidentify the introduced celestial object, in addition to the informationfor a model type of the apparatus, version-up information, and operatinghours. In one way of application of the observation information, therelay Web server 100 can have a function for aggregating respective setsof information of the introduced celestial objects to make a rankingthereof. In this case, preferably, the following services may beexecuted.

(1) The ranking information of the introduced celestial object isinformed to a plurality of automatic introduction apparatuses.

(2) At least one celestial object is selected from the rankinginformation of the introduced celestial object and a command is given tothe plurality of automatic introduction apparatuses to introduce saidcelestial object.

(3) A command is given to the plurality of automatic introductionapparatuses so as to introduce the celestial objects of high ranksequentially in accordance with the introduced celestial object rankinginformation.

This service allows each user to have a knowledge of a popular celestialobject in advance and thus to make an immediate observation thereof.

Further, the relay Web server 100 may also have a function forclassifying the type of user of each of the automatic introductionapparatuses based on the received observation information. Theclassified type of user may include, for example, a type of interestingcelestial object (the moon, a planet, the sun, a galactic cluster ofnebula, an extragalactic cluster of nebula, a minor planet, a comet, anova/supernova and a variable star), a learning level from a beginner toan expert, and an observation style (photographer, visual observer,academic observer and hobbyist) and so on.

One method can be contemplated by way of example as a means forclassifying the type of user in which the relay Web server 100 hasstored a statistic database in advance, including a number of celestialobject introductions as per each user type, a telescope operation time,and a type of introduced celestial object, based on information gatheredfrom a large number of people, and a determination is made based on thereceived observation information to classify a particular user.

The relay Web server 100 executes a control to each one of the automaticintroduction apparatuses in association with the classified type of useror a transmission of the celestial object information thereto as theservice. This can provide each user categorized as a beginner, an expertand the like with a service of optimal celestial object information.

Further, the relay Web server 100 may provide either one form of serviceselected from a group consisting of a chat, a message board and a TVconference system. A use of this service may be restricted such that theaccess is only allowed between or among the automatic introductionapparatuses determined to be in the observation of the same celestialobject based on the observation information or the automaticintroduction apparatuses of the same type of users.

This can facilitate the acquisition rate of the information to berequired for the observation.

Fourth Embodiment Fully Automated Introduction Apparatus

FIG. 17 shows a schematic configuration of a fully automatedintroduction apparatus 10 c according to a fourth embodiment of thepresent invention. It is to be noted that the features similar to thosein the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 3 are given the same reference numeralsand detailed descriptions of similar features are herein omitted, onlydifferent features being described.

A fully automated introduction apparatus 10 c is intended to automate aninitial setting of an automatic introduction type telescope of the priorart and also to improve precision in an automatic introduction.

To achieve this object, the fully automated introduction apparatus 10 ccomprises an image-capturing unit 80 integrally mounted to a lens barrel12 b in parallel with an optical axis of the telescope. Thisimage-capturing unit 80 comprises a lens section 80 a designed as a lensof variable focal distance, such as a zoom lens of broad scaling factorcovering from a wide angle side to a telescopic side, for example, and acamera section 80 b comprising a CCD camera or a CMOS image sensor. Thelens section 80 a may be incorporated with a motor and an encoder forexecuting the zooming operation, though not shown, in which the focaldistance can be set at each time by a time based on a command from a CPU53.

The automatic introduction apparatus 10 c comprises an image processingsection 82 serving for a converting process of image data taken by theimage-capturing unit 80, a celestial object database 86 storing a set ofinformation concerning respective celestial objects in a whole sky, anda celestial object identification section 88 for comparing thearrangement data of the celestial object that has been converted by theimage processing section 82 with the arrangement data of the fundamentalcelestial object that has been extracted from the celestial objectdatabase 86, so as to identify the area (and the celestial object) thathas been captured by the image-capturing unit 80.

Since making the comparison by using the image data captured directlyrequires considerable arithmetic operation time, the image processingsection 82 converts the captured image data to the compressed datacontaining a minimum volume of information required for identifyingrespective celestial objects within the captured image area. Forexample, a contour of each celestial object is extracted from the pixeldata of the captured image area, and the arrangement data of celestialobject is created, which contains a position coordinate and a brightnessof each extracted celestial object (which may be estimated from anaverage value of output intensity of image pickup device within thecorresponding astronomical area, for example). It is a matter of coursethat the arrangement data of the fundamental celestial object of thecelestial object database 86 may be created in advance in the samemanner as the above for respective celestial objects in the whole sky.It is to be noted that in order to reduce the possibility that the CCDnoise is extracted as a celestial object by mistake, the imageprocessing section 82 may provide addition operations of a plurality ofimages taken in the same area so as to improve the S/N ratio.

Preferably, the celestial object identification section 88 may beconfigured as an arithmetic operation circuit independently from the CPUin order to reduce a loading on the CPU 53 in association with thecomparing operation. In one example of the comparing operation, thearrangement data of celestial object containing the position coordinateand brightness of each celestial object is compared with a plurality ofarrangement data of a fundamental celestial object provided as acandidate that has been obtained by extracting from the celestial objectdatabase 86 while shifting one-by-one a region of the same area, so asto calculate the similarity therebetween, in which the candidatearrangement area of celestial object giving the highest similarity canbe identified as the image-captured area taken by the image-capturingunit 80.

To achieve the fully automated introduction apparatus which will bedescribed later, the CPU 53 comprises, in addition to the Web servertype automatic introduction function similar to that of the CPU 52 ofthe second embodiment, a function for detecting a coordinate position ofthe direction to which the telescope is oriented from the positioncoordinate of the celestial object identified by the celestial objectidentification section 88 and determining any deviation from the targetcelestial object based on the coordinate position. So long as thisfunction is provided, the CPU 53 may employ the CPU of the firstembodiment that has not been equipped with the server function.Advantages provided by the CPU 53 equipped with the Web server functionmay include its ability to renew the celestial object database 86 sothat it can reflect a certain type of information on an emergence of anew celestial object, such as a comet, a minor planet, a nova and asupernova, and/or a change in the luminosity of a variable star.

The CPU 53 is optionally connected with a weather sensor 90. When theaccess is made remotely to achieve the fully automated introduction,this allows opening and closing of the observation room depending on theweather and climate, and further to take advantage of the informationindicative of the direction or the altitude of cloud.

The image-capturing unit 80 is not necessarily of external type but maybe of direct detection type in which the image-capturing unit 80 isdetachably inserted in an optical path of the telescope lens barrel 12 bso as to directly capture the light passing through an objective lens ofthe telescope or to detect the light guided from a light switchingdevice such as a miller inserted into the optical path. In case of thedirect detection type, the image-capturing unit 80 may be designed suchthat the lens section 80 a is removed and the optical system of the lensbarrel 12 b is used to carry out the image-capturing of direct focusingor that the lens section 80 a functions as an eye piece of variablescaling factor with respect to the objective lens of the lens barrel 12b. Alternatively, such a configuration may be contemplated in which theimage-capturing in the wide angle side is carried out by the externalimage-capturing unit, while the image-capturing in the telescopic fieldside aiming for a maximum precision must be carried out by a separateimage-capturing unit of direct detection type.

A flow of an automatic alignment in a fully-automated introductionapparatus 10 c will now be described by using FIGS. 18 and 19. FIGS. 18and 19 show an example for automatically detecting by using twofundamental stars through what kind of coordinate transformation avirtual coordinate system of the telescope on an observation siteacknowledged by the CPU relates to the celestial coordinate systemcapable of specifying the coordinate position of each celestial object.

As shown in FIG. 18, firstly, an arrangement of celestial objects in thecurrent sky is calculated from a set of initial parameters including adate and time and the latitude and longitude information of theobservation site and an internal celestial object database 86 (Step600). It is to be noted that the information of date and time may beobtainable from an internal clock such as an electric wave clock, whilethe latitude and longitude information in the observation site may berepresented by a value stored in a flash memory which has beenpreviously input by the user or obtainable from the GPS.

Subsequently, the first candidate of the celestial object for the imagecapturing that is expected to be in a state of emergence from thecalculated arrangement of celestial object in the current sky isselected (Step 602). During this process, in order to exclude the areain which the field of view is blocked by artificial buildings and streetlamps, equipment such as an infrared telescope may be mounted inparallel and the determination as to whether the celestial objectextraction is acceptable is made from the information thereof and thecaptured image data, thereby facilitating a quick and reliable selectionof the candidate for the image-capturing. Further, the weather sensor 90may be used in combination so that the area of no cloud in the sky maybe selected as the candidate for the image-capturing.

Subsequently, the lens barrel 12 b is set toward a predetermineddirection (Step 604). For example, the motor may be controlled such thatthe lens barrel 12 b is automatically positioned toward the direction ofthe selected candidate for the image-capturing under the condition thatthe user, in the initial setting stage, positions the lens barrel 12 bto be directed, for example, approximately toward the west with ahorizontal posture. Alternatively, the telescope may be equipped with anazimuth sensor and a gradient sensor as its internal components so thatthe current location of the telescope can be calculated from theiroutput signals and based thereon the motor may be controlled such thatthe lens barrel 12 b is automatically positioned approximately towardthe direction of the selected candidate for the image-capturing.

After the lens barrel 12 b has been directed approximately to the firstcandidate for the image-capturing, the lens section 80 a is set in thewide angle side and the image is then captured (Step 606). Once thecaptured image data has been transferred to the image processing section82, the image processing section 82 executes an image processing on thecaptured image data and an extracting work of the celestial objectwithin an area of candidate for the image-capturing (Step 608). It isthen determined whether the celestial object has been extracted withinthe area of the candidate for the image-capturing (Step 610). If thecelestial object has not been extracted (negative determination at Step610), the process returns back to Step 602, where another candidate forthe image-capturing is selected and the similar operations are repeated.If the celestial object has been extracted (affirmative determination atStep 610), the celestial object identification section 88 compares thecelestial object data extracted within the area of the candidate for theimage-capturing with the celestial object data within the celestialobject database 86 (Step 612) to identify the extracted celestial object(Step 614). During this process, preferably the celestial objectidentification section 88 excludes the data on the not-emergingcelestial object from the arrangement of celestial objects in thecalculated current sky in order to reduce a necessary amount ofoperation. Further, when the precision can be taken into account, thecomparison may be applied to the data on the celestial object includedin a range which includes the area of the captured candidate for theimage-capturing (by a field angle of the lens 80 a) while also takingany error into account.

When the extracted celestial object is identified, the coordinatetransformation parameter of the telescope virtual coordinate system iscorrected based on the position coordinate of the extracted celestialobject (Step 616).

Subsequently, it is determined whether satisfactory precision has beenobtained in the above-described alignment procedure (Step 618). Thisdetermination may be made based on, for example, whether a focaldistance of the image-capturing lens section 80 a (or the resultantfocal distance with the objective lens) has exceeded a predeterminedvalue. Further, such a determination may be provided in combination,whether or not the similarity in the comparison operation relative tothe celestial object database has exceeded a predetermined value. If theimage has been captured in the wide angle side, since satisfactoryprecision has not been obtained (negative determination at Step 618),the process moves to Step 622.

At Step 622, a celestial object of attention (a first fundamental star)is selected from among the celestial objects identified at Step 614within the current field of view or the area of candidates forimage-capturing, and the telescope is controlled by a motor such thatthe celestial object can be introduced into the center of field (Step622). Then, the lens section 80 b is controlled to provide a zooming-inby one step to the telescopic side and the camera section 80 b takes animage (Step 624). The image processing section 82 performs the imageprocessing of the captured image data so as to extract the firstfundamental star (Step 626). The process again returns to Step 612, andsimilar processing is repeated on the first fundamental star. In thisway, as the lens section 82 b provides the zooming-in in a step-by-stepmanner toward the telescopic side to finally obtain the satisfactoryprecision on the position of the first fundamental star (affirmativedetermination at Step 618), the setting of the first fundamental star iscompleted (Step 620). It is to be noted that in the precisiondetermination at Step 618 in the telescopic side, satisfactory precisionmay be determined when the elongation between the fundamental star andthe center of the field falls under the threshold value.

Subsequently, as shown in the flow chart of FIG. 19, other candidatesfor the image-capturing than the candidate for the image-capturingselected as the first fundamental star is selected (Step 630), and asecond fundamental star setting operation is carried out in a similarmanner to respective steps of FIG. 18 (Step 632 to Step 654). If finallya satisfactory precision is obtained for a position coordinate of thesecond fundamental star (affirmative determination at Step 646), thesetting of the second fundamental star ands thus the alignment arecompleted (Step 648). Specifically, the coordinate transformationparameter of the telescope virtual coordinate system relative to thecelestial object coordinate system has been automatically establishedwith satisfactory precision.

To summarize the alignment procedure as shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, thefollowing steps may be executed.

(1) The user places a telescope into a position appropriately.

(2) The automatic introduction apparatus 10 c directs the telescopetoward the appropriate direction in the sky to capture an image.

(3) The automatic introduction apparatus identifies the celestial objectfrom the captured image so as to determine the coordinate to which thetelescope is directed.

Specifically, according to the fourth embodiment, such a fully automatedintroduction apparatus that allows the initial setting to be almostfully automatically completed can be achieved.

It is to be noted that although such an example is shown at Step 600 ofFIG. 18 in which the user positions the telescope toward a predetermineddirection and/or the user inputs the initial parameters including thelatitude and longitude information, these steps may be also automated byusing the image-capturing unit 80. For example, if a super-wide-anglelens or a fish-eye-lens (in this case the curvature aberration should becompensated for) may be used to capture an image of a wide area of thesky, and the image processing section 82 extracts the position ofconstellation to identify respective celestial objects, then thearrangement of celestial objects in the current sky can be identified.The initial parameter may be automatically determined and establishedfrom this arrangement of celestial object. In this way, the user is onlyrequested to position the telescope lens barrel to be directed towardthe sky appropriately, and the process at Step 600 can be furthersimplified. At that time, if those areas in which the field of view isblocked by buildings or clouds are detected by the infrared telescopeand the weather sensor 90, and those areas are excluded in thecomparison with the celestial object database, then the automaticsetting of the initial parameter can be performed quickly and reliably.

A flow of fully automated introduction by the fully automatedintroduction apparatus 10 c will now be described with reference to FIG.20.

As shown in FIG. 20, firstly the user operates the controller 54 tospecify a celestial object desired to be introduced (Step 660). Theautomatic introduction apparatus 10 c controls a motor so as to positionthe telescope lens barrel to be directed toward the celestial objectdesired to be introduced (Step 662).

Once the control to the motor has been stopped, the lens section 80 b isset to a semi-telescopic field, for example, and the camera section 80 bcaptures an image (Step 664). The image processing section 82 providesthe image processing of the captured image data and carries on the stepfor extracting the celestial object (Step 668). Then, it is determinedwhether the celestial object has been extracted within theimage-capturing area (Step 670). If the celestial object has not beenextracted (negative determination at Step 670), the fully automatedintroduction may be ended as it is determined to be impossible due tothe blocking of the field by buildings, mountains or clouds (Step 672).At that time, preferably the display section of the controller 54 givesan alarm indication thereof.

If the celestial object has been extracted (affirmative determination atStep 670), the celestial object identification section 88 compares thecelestial object data extracted in the image-capturing area with thecelestial object data within the celestial object database 86 (Step 674)so as to extract the target celestial object and to detect the positionthereof.

Subsequently, the motor control is applied to the telescope in order tointroduce the extracted target celestial object into the center of thefield (Step 678).

It is then determined whether the introduction has been carried out withsufficient precision (Step 680). This determination may be made basedon, for example, whether a focal distance of the image-capturing lenssection 80 a (or the resultant focal distance with the objective lens)has exceeded a predetermined value, and in addition the elongationbetween the target celestial object position and the position in thecenter of field falls within a certain range. If the image has beencaptured in the semi-telescopic field side, the precision is notsufficient (negative determination at Step 680), and the process movesto Step 684.

At Step 684, the lens section 80 b executes the zooming-in by one steptoward the telescopic field side, in which the image is then captured bythe camera section 80 b. The image processing section 82 performs theimage processing of the captured image data to extract the targetcelestial object (Step 686). The process returns to Step 678 again,where similar processes are repeated on the target celestial object. Inthis way, as the lens section 82 b provides the zooming-in in astep-by-step manner toward the telescopic side to finally obtain thesatisfactory precision on the position of the target celestial object(affirmative determination at Step 680), the fully automatedintroduction is ended (Step 682).

Typically, as in the automatically introduced state, the precision inthe introduction has been limited due to an orthogonal error on the axesof the mount and other factors. However, in the automatic introductionapparatus 10 c of the present embodiment, after the automaticintroduction with an ordinary level of precision has been completed, thetarget celestial object can be identified from the captured image andintroduced into the center of the field. If the scaling factor isincreased by using the zooming function of the image-capturing unit, forexample, the celestial object can be introduced into the center of fieldwith higher precision. The automatic introduction apparatus 10 c of thepresent embodiment may have additional functions as follows.

(Auto-Guider Function)

Especially when taking a picture of a dark nebula or a cluster, anexposure as long as one hour or longer may be required. Even in such acase, the mount is required to track the celestial object precisely forthis long period. Since in the present system, a control signal can beconstantly sent so that the target celestial object can be positioned inthe center of field, it can work out as an automatic tracking apparatusof high precision. If the scaling factor of the image-capturing unit 80is increased, the tracking with much higher precision can be provided.

(Starry Sky Automatic Guide Function)

The captured image is presented on the screen of the controller andsimultaneously the name of a celestial object identified by thecelestial object identification function is also presented on thescreen. Further, the present apparatus can provide an indication of thedetailed description of the celestial object searched from the celestialobject database, including, for example, a magnitude of star, a size, acoordinate and a constellation to which it belongs, and thus can workout as an automatic guide device of the sky to which the telescope iscurrently directed.

(New Celestial Object Searching Function)

Since the image processing section 82 has a function for extracting thecelestial object and identifying the position thereof, if there is acelestial object that has been extracted but does not exist in thecelestial object database 86, it may be possibly a nova, a supernova, acomet or an unregistered minor planet. In this connection, if such acelestial object has been detected, the indication of the descriptionand image of the same celestial object may be provided to the controller54 as a new celestial object candidate. On the other hand, since thereis a possibility that the detection may caused by a noise, if a newcelestial object candidate has been detected, image-capturing is carriedout over the same area two or more times to verify whether the detectionis caused by a noise. If so, it may contribute to the improvement of thealignment precision or the introduction precision. Further, if theposition of the new celestial object candidate captured at differenttimes with some interval therebetween has been moved, an indication ofthe possibility of its being a comet or a minor planet may be given.Further, the CPU 53 may have an electric mail transmission function or aFAX function so that if there is a high probability that it is newcelestial object, the indication thereof may be sent to a predeterminedcommunication site easily.

Although the respective embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed, the present invention is not limited to them, and a varietyof modifications and substitutions may be made within a scope of thepresent invention as defined by the appended claims.

For example, the term “telescope” referred in the specification is notsimply limited to the means enabling the observation of a celestialobject with the naked eye but it may encompass an image-capturing unitdirected to image-capturing such as a Schmidt camera and further includean observation apparatus capable of observing not only a visible lightbut also an electric wave, an X-ray, a γ-ray or an infrared ray.

Further the handset 24 of FIG. 2 may be used as an electronicconstellation quick reference board equipped with the function shown inFIG. 5, even though it is not connected to the telescope (or itsfunction as a controller of the automatic introduction apparatus hasbeen omitted).

1. A terminal device connectable to an automatic introduction apparatusfor automatically introducing a target celestial object by controlling arotation of an astronomical telescope around at least two axes, saidterminal device comprising: an input operation section for executing acommand operation on said automatic introduction apparatus; an imagedisplay section for indicating a star map image for a predetermined areaon a celestial sphere in accordance with a display scale factor; anazimuth detection means for detecting an azimuth along the direction towhich said terminal device is oriented; and a gradient detection meansfor detecting a gradient along the direction to which said terminaldevice is oriented, wherein said image display section includes aconstellation quick reference mode for displaying a star map image for apredetermined area which is observed along the direction specified bythe azimuth detected by said azimuth detection means and the gradientdetected by said gradient detection means at a current date and time anda longitude and latitude of an observation site.
 2. A terminal device inaccordance with claim 1, wherein in said constellation quick referencemode, at least one of a celestial object selecting mode and a telescopecontrol mode can be executed, said celestial object selecting modeallowing either of a target celestial object for automatic introductionor a fundamental celestial object for alignment to be selected over saidstar map image displayed in said image display section, and saidtelescope control mode providing a control of said astronomicaltelescope so as to be oriented toward a direction specified by theazimuth detected by said azimuth detection means and the gradientdetected by said gradient detection means.